Amir heard this and temporarily held back from acting.
Soon, the three of them surrounded him, maliciously blocking Amir against the wall.
The person on the distant rooftop showed a look of regret. That probably was not aimed at Amir, but rather regret that he could not personally make a move.
"The boss already gave the order. No one goes out to steal today. Everyone stays in the camp on standby. Why did you go out?"
Amir thought for a moment, then quietly said to the three of them, "I've been watching a very rich outsider these past few days. Today, I finally had a chance."
Hearing Amir's words, the three of them no longer seemed angry at all. They had never come to scold these pickpockets in the first place. That was not their responsibility. Their only goal was to squeeze something out of these children.
This was the gatekeepers' exclusive privilege.
One of them immediately reached toward Amir's backpack.
Amir shifted slightly and dodged that hand.
"You've got some nerve," the man said. This pickpocket actually dared to dodge? Normally, dodging would have been one thing. After all, it was understandable to be reluctant to part with something stolen through hard work. But today, this little pickpocket had already violated the boss's order and been caught by them. Under these circumstances, he still dared to dodge?
Amir ignored the man's anger and continued, "While I was working today, I discovered a major secret. I need to report it to the boss immediately. It has to do with today's deal!"
"What secret?" When they heard that it involved today's deal, the three men's tone immediately weakened. If it truly was important, they really did not dare risk snatching his things.
"That has to be told directly to the boss." Amir took a few credits from his pocket and handed them to the three men in front of him. "This is all I got."
As soon as they saw the credits, the three men's expressions softened a little. They swept their eyes over Amir, trying to see whether he had hidden anything else, but they still did not go too far. This was already quite a lot of money, more than the total haul of most pickpockets on an ordinary day.
Besides, they could not drain the pond to catch the fish. If they squeezed the lowest-level pickpockets too harshly, the children they had trained would rebel. Everyone needed to eat.
"The boss is inside the camp. You'd better be smart. Even if you really have something important, don't ruin his mood, or you'll get shot in the head." After snatching the credits, the three men's attention had long since shifted to how they would divide the loot. They only casually reminded Amir.
"Mm-hm." Amir nodded and looked toward the distant rooftop. The person up there was staring closely at the credits in the three men's hands, carefully confirming how much money it was. If they dared give him less than his share later, that would not do.
So he did not notice a thumb-sized spider quietly crawling to his feet.
Without a sound, a violent current burst out beneath him, directly paralyzing his nerves.
With a muffled thud, his entire body fell from the rooftop uncontrollably and smashed hard onto the concrete ground.
Although the three gatekeepers were immersed in the joy of making money, they still instinctively turned their heads to look.
At that moment, Amir, hidden beneath his dark-brown robe, the young man they had mistaken for a little pickpocket all along, drew a lightsaber from his sleeve.
With a low hum, the green blade lit up in the dim corridor. With a single sweep, the three men standing close to Amir were struck through their vital points. They collapsed before they could even cry out, leaving only deep terror on their faces.
"Done," Amir said into the Rat Tunnels. The whole group came out.
Amir picked up his credits from the ground, retrieved the spider robot while he was at it, and told the others about what had just happened.
"Their boss is inside the camp, and he ordered everyone not to go out today."
"Looks like we were right. If they're making a deal, there's a high chance it's today." Joan nodded.
Amir asked, "Do you know where their camp is?"
"I know the approximate location, but I've never gone in to investigate." Joan had put in quite a lot of effort before this.
32 silently moved the corpses to a corner and hid them. The later they were discovered, the better it would be for them.
"Then let's go. But we need to avoid people. Dead Hand's defenses today must be very tight. According to what those three just said, all of their people should have returned to this area. Security inside the camp will be even stricter," Amir told the group.
Trying not to be discovered would not be easy either.
Directly across from the Rat Tunnel exit they had just left was another entrance.
The entrances and exits of the city's Rat Tunnels were usually arranged in pairs like this, connected to the outside between them, making it convenient for people to move around.
Amir had a sudden idea. "Can we keep using the Rat Tunnels to get closer?"
"We can, but I don't know the internal layout, and I don't know the correct route. If we go in, we'll basically be stumbling around blind. Besides, there must also be a large number of Dead Hand members inside the tunnels."
"If we walk outside, we'll get there very quickly. Dead Hand's camp is nearby!" Valera said.
"Then let's hurry!" Millisyn said impatiently.
Joan interrupted the two of them and said to Amir, "Right now, we still don't know where the relic is. If it's in Nuruddin's hands, secretly taking it out is almost impossible. If we seize it by force, escaping will be extremely difficult."
"That's true. Almost all of Dead Hand's members have pulled back to defend the area. It looks like Nuruddin attaches great importance to this deal and must have made every preparation. We can only wait for an opportunity and see whether we can confirm the relic's location first."
"No matter what, let's get closer first and find somewhere to hide and observe." In the end, Joan made the decision.
The group moved through the city's alleys. Every short distance, they had to stop and observe the Dead Hand members around them. The closer they got to the camp, the more Amir noticed the personnel becoming concentrated. Hiding was getting harder and harder.
"We can't avoid them!" Amir sensed someone approaching, and there were also people watching from behind. They were pinned inside an alley with nowhere to go.
Joan also grew anxious and kept looking around.
"To the rooftops!" Amir made the decision immediately and leapt up. Joan followed right after him.
These heights were not a problem for anyone in the group. Millisyn could also jump up easily. As for the others, every one of them had a high-performance mechanical body.
After Amir got onto the roof, he looked into the distance. There were quite a few lookouts on several nearby rooftops, holding binoculars and blasters as they patrolled the area.
Amir hid behind a machine installed on the rooftop. No matter where they were, they could not be careless.
Millisyn jumped up after 32. The moment she landed, she heard Joan whisper sharply, "Hide!"
Millisyn was startled and immediately lay flat on the ground.
Through the gap beneath the machinery, she saw that not far ahead, the hatch leading from below to the rooftop had suddenly opened. A man walked out through the door, his old boots stepping across the ground one step at a time.
Amir looked down. 32 and Valera had not had time to come up yet.
And the patrols below were already closing in on the alley where they were.
Jumping up now would only make them discovered by the person on the rooftop.
There was no time to wait. Amir focused his attention on the person who had just climbed onto the roof.
Through the gaps between the rows of machinery, Amir confirmed that this person was a Dead Hand member. He was carrying a sniper rifle and walking back and forth across the rooftop, as if searching for a suitable position.
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🌌 STAR WARS: RELICS OF THE PAST
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✨ THE FORCE STILL HAS SECRETS.
The galaxy remembers its wars.
The Jedi remember their teachings.
But beneath forgotten worlds and ancient ruins...
Something older is still waiting.
Star Wars: Relics of the Past has 100+ chapters ahead available now.
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🌌 THE PAST NEVER TRULY DISAPPEARS
⚔️ Jedi mysteries
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Some relics can change a life.
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